Hogs & Warts
by atrfla
Summary: A story that's based off of all of the little experiences I've had on the website Potter-More, with all of my virtual friends. No main plot, just a lot of Hogwarts fun! If anyone has a better title, please, PM me!
1. Chapter 1: For Light

You can imagine how excited my parents were when they got the Hogwarts letter. We'd known that I had magic for a while, after I accidentally dropped Dad into the bushes while I was helping Mum to clean the windows- with my _pinky finger_. And my mind, of course.

With the letter was another one, one explaining exactly what Hogwarts was (although we already knew) and that since I knew a wizard, I should ask him to accompany me to Diagon Alley.

The wizard- his name was Charles Lee and he lived next door- was happy to go with me to Diagon Alley and to see me off on September 1 (my parents had work). In fact, Charles, or Charlie as I called him, was the reason we knew Hogwarts was real at all. He had graduated from it about ten years before Harry Potter entered.

Charlie even offered to pay for my books and things, since he rarely visited the magic world and had Galleons stockpiling up. My parents thanked him and told him they'd compensate him for every Knut he spent.

Once we arrived in London, Charlie lead me through the streets until he pointed to the other side of the road. "See that, Addie girl? That's the Leaky Cauldron, the entrance to Diagon Alley."

"I see it," I said excitably.

The bartender was filling up glasses with- oh wow is that firewhisky- and squinted good-naturedly at us. "Charlie! Haven't seen _you_ around here in a while. That your granddaughter?"

"This is Adelsie Monroe, Tom," Charlie told him importantly. "She's my neighbor. A Muggle-born. I offered to bring her here, help her shop."

Tom nodded. "And do you have time for a quick drink?"

"Maybe another time, Tom," Charlie promised. "Now, Addie girl, what's first on that list?"

"Robes," I said as he tapped the bricks with a wand that he produced out of nowhere. "And a cauldron. And a wand. And books."

"One at a time, Addie girl!" Charlie laughed. "Robes... let's see how busy Madam Malkin's is today."

He steered me towards the robe shop, where a lonely-looking Madam Malkin fitted me for a few pairs of robes. Then we stopped by the cauldron shoppe and got me a cauldron.

Next, we stopped by Flourish & Blotts and picked up The Standard Book of Spells, Grade One as well as a few other necessary books and one that wasn't- Charlie splurged on getting me Quidditch through the Ages so I wouldn't be too lost during Hogwarts Quidditch matches. Then we went to Florean Fortescue's old-fashioned ice cream parlor. I had quadruple chocolate fudge, a personal favorite; he had fig. Charlie seemed to know everyone around here, and Florean Fortescue was no different. He had immediately took a liking to me and they had chatted until I impatiently pointed out that Charlie's fig ice cream was dripping all over the floor.

"A wand..." Charlie mused as we ate our ice cream. "Well, Ollivander was the best of the best, but he died about five years ago. Now his son runs the shop- but still, it's probably our best bet, Addie girl."

I finished up my ice cream and tossed the trash into the garbage. "Ollivander's it is." But since he still hadn't finished his incredibly drippy ice cream, he consented to wait outside while I went in, eager to find a wand.

A man of about thirty was up on a ladder, arranging stacks of wand boxes ten feet above my head. When I entered, he looked down and grinned. "Ah, customer!" He climbed down the ladder and made a courteous little bow. "My name is William Ollivander, at your service."

"I'm Adelsie Monroe," I volunteered, "and I'm Muggle-born, so I'm kind of new to this whole magic thing."

His smile grew wider. "A Muggle-born! Well, we'll just have to find you a perfect wand to start out your time at Hogwarts."

He handed me a box from on a chair nearby. The whole place was cluttered with them. "Ten and three-quarter inches, unicorn-hair core, birch wood, rigid."

I tentatively took the short, hard wand out of the box and held it in my hand. Nothing happened. Doubt shot through me. Maybe I'm not magic at all.

William snatched the wand and box from me, saying cheerfully, "Ah well, the wand chooses the wizard, you know! Or in your case, the witch. Try this one."

I took the wand he offered me as he rattled off the facts about it. "Ten and three-quarter inches, core of dragon heart, oak wood, slightly bendy."

When I took the wand, it immediately shot out a beam of light that pulverized a potted plant in the corner. I handed the wand back to William. "I don't think that's the right one," I said lamely.

"No worries, Miss Monroe!" he nearly chirped, putting the wand away and drawing another from its box. "That's what the plants are for! And don't worry, it took my mum ten tries to find her wand! Thirteen and three-quarter inches, core of dragon heart, rowan wood and slightly bendy. Try it."

I pointed the long wand at another potted plant above me. After a beat, the flowers shriveled and died.

"Another!" William said grandly. He climbed his ladder to the very, very top and plucked a long, thin box from the apex of the shelves. "Try this one, Miss Monroe." He clambered back down and handed it off to me. "Thirteen and three-quarter inches, phoenix-feather core, hazel wood, slightly springy."

I took the wand. As my hand wrapped firmly around its base, the wand started to shiver. Finally, it emitted a soft golden trail of light. I wrote my name in the air with the wand and was pleased to see my name shimmering in gold before me.

"I think we've found a winner," William said. He took the wand from me and put it in its box just as the door opened and Charlie entered.

"I found one, Charlie!" I said excitedly.

"How many tries did it take you?" he asked with a gruff smile.

"Four," I said sheepishly.

He ruffled my auburn hair. "It took me seven."

I nearly laughed out loud as William came back with the box. "That'll be seven Galleons, Miss Monroe, please- well, if it isn't Charlie Lee!"

"William, you old rascal!" cried Charlie. They exchanged hellos and Charlie paid him for the wand. After chatting a little bit more, William had to leave to take care of another customer, and Charlie and I left the wandmaker's shop and trotted down the street.

"What do you say we visit one last shop before our train ride home?" Charlie suggested.

"Where?" I asked, looking around. We'd hit all the shops except two...

"The Magical Menagerie, Addie girl," said Charlie with an odd wiggle of his fingers. "No first year should be without a pet."

I hugged him excitedly. "Oh, really, Charlie? Can I get a cat?"

"Cat, toad, owl," he listed as I followed him towards the Menagerie. "Owls are useful things, carryin' your mail and such, but they aren't so affectionate, owls. Toads are nasty and no one should get a toad. Cats are the most loving but they don't do so much. Except kill the rats."

"A cat, then," I said firmly.

We entered the Menagerie and I was immediately overwhelmed by the sheer amount of animals. Cats, rats, toads, and owls prowled about like they owned the place or sulked in cages. One of the cats was sleeping in a beam of sunlight from a window. It had black fur and big green eyes, but I didn't like it so much, so I moved on.

I contemplated black cats, white cats, orange cats, big cats, small kittens, fluffy cats and ones with nearly no fur at all. After examining a pair of identical Siamese kittens, I moved to the counter. "Maybe I will have an owl, none of the cats seem _right_..."

I trailed off after catching sight of the cat sitting attentively on the counter next to my elbow. It was big and had fluffy white fur and the bluest eyes I'd ever seen in a cat. "How much is he? Or she?"

"That's Fernunculus," the witch running the shop said. "Male. Very sociable, likes to meet everyone who comes in here, and loves them all. Nine Galleons."

"I'll take him," I told Charlie, who pulled out his money pouch to pay.

I softly petted Fernunculus. "Hey, Fernunculus," I said softly. "I'm Adelsie. I'm going to take you home. And then to school, where you'll meet lots of new people, okay?"

At the word "home", Fernunculus put his head on my shoulder. I gathered him up in my arms and smiled happily at Charlie. "Let's go _home_."

"All right," Charlie agreed. We put Fernunculus in a cage, which he wasn't too happy about, and exited the shoppe, which he was psyched about. My new cat meowed every time we passed someone. He really is a sociable cat.

As we passed a joke shop with big, colorful displays, I asked Charlie, "What's that shop, Charlie?"

"The Weasley's Wizard Wheezes shop," Charlie answered. "Anything from there is banned at Hogwarts, but maybe we can go and get some of the minor stuff next year, Addie girl. That sound good?"

"It sounds _great_," I said happily, and strode along with my cat's cage in my hands.


	2. Chapter 2: For April

**I fixed all of the grammatical errors- I wrote this on my phone, so it's my phone's fault.**

On September first, Charlie brought me and Fernunculus to King's Cross Station. We drove instead of taking the train like last time.

I had become totally smitten with Fernunculus. The fluffy white cat was just so _adorable_! My parents, although my dad was allergic to cat hair, liked him too- who wouldn't have?

Charlie helped me unload my luggage and walk through the Muggle section of King's Cross. Finally, we arrived at a brick pillar between Platform Nine and Platform Ten. There was a gaggle of people there, including one girl with dirty blonde hair standing way off by herself and staring nervously at the brick column.

I came up beside her, Charlie in tow. She looked about my age. "I'm nervous too," I said.

She looked at me. "First year, too?"

"Yep," I confirmed. "I'm Adelsie Monroe. You can call me Addie."

"Nice to meet you, Addie," the girl said. "I'm Zoe Gallagher."

"Are you a Muggle-born, too?" I asked.

"I'm a half-Muggle-born," she explained. "Mum's a Muggle but Dad's a wizard."

"Cool!" I said, intrigued. "Did you grow up in the wizarding world?"

She nodded. "At Mum's request."

I nodded to her cart, and more specifically, her small brown barn owl. "That's a pretty owl."

"Thank you!" she grinned. "Her name is Tezzina- after this really ancient witch- but I call her Tezzy."

Charlie came up behind me- I hadn't even noticed he was gone. "Addie girl, you and your new friend should probably get onto the platform now."

"Is he your grandfather?" Zoe asked.

"No," I told her, "just a wizard who lives on our street. But he is kind of a surrogate grandfather."

Zoe went first, running at the brick pillar like there were dementors behind her. I squeezed my eyes shut, expecting to hear a clatter and a clang as Zoe's things spilled all over the platforms, but I heard nothing. Opening my eyes, I saw that she was gone!

"You next, Addie girl," said Charlie, nudging my arm.

I steeled myself and waited for a group of Muggle passers-by to pass by me, then I closed my eyes again and sprinted for the bricks. After a few seconds, I felt a nice cooling sensation, and then it was hot and muggy. I stopped running.

Zoe was waiting in front of me, a smile on her pale face. "Wasn't so bad, right?"

"Have you done that before?" I gasped out.

She nodded again. "Dad rigged up something similar so I could practice last year."

Charlie followed us and stumbled out behind me. He pressed something into my palm, which I pocketed, whispered something into my ear, and then pointed toward the smoking red steam engine. "And there it is, girls, your ticket to Hogwarts."

ooo

Zoe and I boarded the train and found an empty compartment. We put our luggage up top. She let Tezzy out, and I in turn set Fernunculus free. Fernunculus immediately scrambled over to the other bench to meet Zoe and Tezzy.

"Your cat is so cute!" Zoe said, laughing and petting his head.

"I know," I said, beaming.

While Zoe was occupied with Fernunculus, I looked out the window to find Charlie. Instead, four kids swarming around a tired-looking Muggle lady in white caught my eye. Two had white hair, one black and one a dark brown. The only boy had white hair so bright it hurt to look at it.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Charlie waving. I waved back, and he smiled and tapped his waist. I held up the small money pouch he'd given me with a few extra Galleons- he said I'd never know when I would need some money. He smiled again, nodded and waved one last time as the train let out a belch and started up.

Kids fled for the train, hopping on. I watched the flood of people boarding-

"Excuse me," said a voice. "Is this seat taken?"

Zoe and I both turned, me from the window and her from playing with Tezzy and Fernunculus. I moved Fernunculus's cage to the floor as the petite Hispanic girl shifted from one foot to another. "No, you can sit here if you want. First year?"

She nodded. "You guys?"

"Both of us," Zoe confirmed. "I'm Zoe and this is Adelsie. What's your name?"

"June," the girl said shyly. "I'm June Tyler." She put her luggage up above and let her medium-sized tabby cat loose. "And this is Stripes."

We heard talking outside. "Shhh! Listen!" I said. We hushed and listened attentively.

"...get rid of us as soon as she can..."

"...excited to _not _be the first years..."

"Don't be that way, Kat!"

"What? It's true!"

"I'm going to sit in here," said a girl firmly, and the door to our compartment slammed open. One of the three girls from the quartet of kids I'd seen earlier- the black-haired one- stormed in, closed the door, and sat in the empty seat next to Zoe, bangles jingling. "Bloody hell, Kat." She blew hair out of her face and looked at us. "What?"

We burst out laughing, and she begrudged us a smile. "Okay, I suppose it is a _little_ funny. Well, my sister's just being stupid right now. She'll get over it."

"I'm Adelsie Monroe," I said, "but you can call me Addie, and this is Zoe Gallagher and June Tyler. We're all first years."

"Me too," the raven-haired girl said. "I'm Elizabeth. Call me Liz."

Zoe snapped her fingers. "I've heard of you! Liz Riddle! You're the daughter of You-Know-Who!"

"He's dead," I said. "Right?"

"He cursed my mum to have his children," Liz grumbled, reverting to her grumpy state. "Can we talk about something else?"

Our door slid open again, and this time a boy stuck his head in. It was the white-haired boy. "Liz, can I sit-" he caught sight of us- "compartment full, never mind. You all good, Liz?"

"I'm fine, Gabe!" Liz snapped irritably. "Gabe" grinned at her, pulled his head out of the compartment and closed the door.

"Who was that?" I asked.

"My brother," Liz sighed. "That's-"

"Gabriel Riddle," Zoe finished. "And your siblings are... wait, let me think... Sunny and... Katherina?"

"Just Kat," Liz corrected. "She doesn't like her name. Sunny and Gabe are twins, one year older than me, and I'm Kat's twin."

"I always wanted a sister," I said. When all eyes turned to me, I explained, "I have three brothers."

"How old?" Zoe asked.

"Fourteen, fourteen and nine," I answered.

"All Muggles?"

"So far," I replied, grinning. "My younger brother- his name is Trevor- might be magic. But I _highly_ doubt it."

The conversation died out. Trying to start another, June mumbled, "So, um, what do you guys like to do?"

After a moment of silence, Liz answered. "I'm a gymnast. And an acrobat."

"Cool," enthused Zoe. "I tried to be a gymnast, but I'm really not flexible. I like playing pranks on people… I can't _wait_ to meet Peeves and play pranks on some fifth years."

"I like to read," I offered.

"Me too!" June said, straightening up. "I love reading!"

"And write," I continued, and June nodded. "Yes, writing too!"

"So you two are obviously Ravenclaws," Liz said. "What about you, Zoe? Personally, I have a feeling I'll make it into Slytherin- Mum's a Muggle, and, you know, these things are genetic."

"I was thinking I'd be a Gryffindor," Zoe said hopefully.

"I always liked Ravenclaw best," I said to lighten the mood after Liz's statement.

"Me too!" June said, and we high-fived.

"When I was younger, I thought I'd be a Ravenclaw," Liz said. "Until, you know, I found out about genetics. I was _always_ top of my class."

"Me too!" Zoe, June and I chorused. We looked at one another and smothered giggles.

By now the train was chugging along, and we were all definitely more at ease then we'd been when we joined the compartment. We were definitely friends.

We talked for hours, compared wands and bought pumpkin pasties, Chocolate Frogs and Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans from the trolley when it passed by. Soon, we had to change into our robes, coax our pets back into their cages (Liz had a black cat named Queen), and get ready to disembark, which we did. We got off with our heads held high.

"Firs' years! Firs' years to me!" came a call from our right. "Firs' years!"

"It's Hagrid!" said Liz with a smile. "Gabe and Sunny say he's really nice."

The four of us followed Hagrid, a real mountain of a man, to a shore with lots of little boats on it.

"Two to a boat!" Hagrid called out.

"Liz!"

Liz, who had been getting into a boat with me, quickly turned around. I did too. It was Gabe, his shock of white hair practically glowing in the night.

"Beware of the squid, little sister," he said with a wink. "And little sister's friends." Then he turned and rejoined his twin and other second-year friends.

"What house is Gabe in?" June asked from the next boat over.

"Ravenclaw," Liz said. "I _know_! Can you believe it? Sunny and our cousin Lillian too! I still think I'll be in Slytherin, though."

Hagrid came along, and after a count of 3 shoved our boat and June & Zoe's into the water. The boats moved as if they had minds of their own, joining the little fleet of two-person canoes crossing the lake.

Finally, Hagrid jumped into a boat and joined us, calling out, "Don' tip over, ye'll freeze to death if the squid doesn't fish ye out."

"And Gabe told us the squid was _evil_," whispered Liz.

We made it to the other side without tipping over or squid attacks. We successfully unloaded ourselves from the boats and tripped up the path in one massive first-year group, Hagrid at our head. Hogwarts was pretty at night, all lit up and glowing golden against the black night sky that was littered with shining stars.

We arrived at a set of huge double doors. Hagrid took the handle and knocked three times. Almost before he'd finished the third knock, the door opened to reveal a very short man with tufts of hair growing out of his ears. Instead of robes, he wore a tuxedo. "Hagrid! Come on in. Minerva's just finishing up her speech- you're a bit late. They won't even have to wait to enter the Great Hall."

"Lead the way," Hagrid said. To us, he explained, "This here is Professor Flitwick, head of Ravenclaw an' the Charms teacher, an' our headmistress is Professor McGonagall."

We followed Professor Flitwick and Hagrid to another set of double doors, which opened on their own after a minute. We stepped into a room so large it could have fit a dozen of my house- no, more! There were four tables, empty, each draped with a different color. At the head of the room, in front of a fifth table facing the whole room, was a woman standing in front of a podium. Candles floated above us and below a sparkling night sky.

"Is there a roof?" I asked quietly, nudging Liz as we paraded down the center aisle in full view.

She nodded. "It's just enchanted to look like the sky outside."

"_Awesome._"

Professor Flitwick stood on a stool and magnified his voice, then squeakily boomed, "The Sorting Hat!" He produced a worn old hat and put it on a second stool.

The hat opened its mouth and began to sing.

"_Once upon a time, before this school wasn't thought of,_

_Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Slytherin and Ravenclaw were brought up_

_Good witches and wizards from good families,_

_Creating a new standard for wizardry._

_Fast forward to the present day, our Houses take only the best,_

_Come place me upon your head- how will you pass the test?_

_Will you be in Gryffindor, the bravest of them all?_

_Or maybe even Slytherin, where no Dark wizard falls._

_Try out your skills in Ravenclaw, where knowledge we trust;_

_Hufflepuff is loyal, true and there you will not fuss!_

_So sit on the stool, give me a try,_

_And you will find that the Sorting Hat does not lie!"_

Applause rang throughout the hall, but quickly died out as Professor Flitwick stood back on his stool and unrolled a large piece of parchment that bumped and tumbled down the steps in front of him. "Addams, Cici!" he read out.

"HUFFLEPUFF!" the Hat decided after being placed on trembling Cici Addams's head.

"Adnoid, Danielle!"

A girl with dark brown hair and glistening, dangerous matching eyes sat on the stool with a poised grace.

"RAVENCLAW!" the Sorting Hat yelled.

We went through the rest of the A's, then the B's, then-

"Casper, Meilin!"

A girl with a wave of shimmering black hair sat upon the stool, and after a full four minutes, the hat shouted "RAVENCLAW!" and Meilin went to sit at the blue table.

The rest of the C's... the D's... there were hardly any E's or F's, but starting off the abundant G's was-

"Gallagher, Zoe!"

Zoe tentatively sat on the stool. Nervous, she looked to me, then Liz, and the hat yelled "RAVENCLAW!"

Zoe was disappointed- I knew that from the train- but I also knew that if I got into Ravenclaw, I would now have a few friends there.

The rest of the G's... then "Hadder, Madison!" started off the H's, and after Madison Hadder came-

"Hayes, Nixsa!"

A girl I vaguely recognized from the platform stepped up, accepted the stool and accepted the hat. It had barely touched her head when it yelled "RAVENCLAW!" Nixsa, looking pleased, sat a seat away from Zoe and next to Meilin.

I... J... K... the letters went by so fast they blurred. And then they were on the M's!

"McClellan, Sophie!"

Two people walked onto the stage- June and another girl I didn't recognize. She had long flyaway light brown hair and only one and one-quarter legs, which was why June had kindly offered her help.

Sophie sat on the stool and received the hat, and waited, and waited, and-

"RAVENCLAW!"

Three more people, _one, two, three_, and then. It. Happened.

"Monroe, Adelsie!"

**Please read/review!**


	3. Chapter 3: For Queenie

_This is not a dream this is not a dream this is not a dream._

My feet moved on their own to the stool. I sat, my long braid swinging against my back. I closed my blue eyes and felt the weight of the hat on my head. Almost immediately, I could hear its thoughts.

_A Muggle-born, oh, those are always smart. And one who likes to read and write, too, yes, just like one I sorted earlier today. Well, there's only one house for you and in case you couldn't guess it's RAVENCLAW!  
_  
The hat yelled that last word to the rest of the Hall. Relieved and excited, I sat between Nixsa and Zoe. There were two empty spots across from me, one of them just _waiting_ for June. For a moment, I let myself dream about all four of us getting into the same house. That would be _awesome..._

"Riddle, Elizabeth!"

I started; had that much time passed already? On second glance, the Slytherin and Hufflepuff tables did look a little more full than they had before.

Liz plopped onto the chair and eagerly took the hat. We waited with baited breath- would she be the one to break the Riddle Ravenclaw streak?

"RAVENCLAW!"

Nope. Liz sat across from Zoe, a slight smile on her thin face. Did she really want Ravenclaw after all?

"Riddle, Katherina!"

Kat took the hat somewhat less eagerly than her sister, but she wore it with pride, and we all leaned forward on the edges of our seats like we were watching a thrilling show on the telly.

"RRRRAVENCLAW!" The hat seemed to draw some pride from putting all of the Riddles in Ravenclaw, and it stretched out the "R" in Ravenclaw longer than it should have.

Kat purposely sat at the other end of the table, where Gabe, Sunny and their cousin Lillian were watching the Sorting attentively.

"Rowan, Meg!"

We waited all through the rest of the R's and the S's and the beginning of the T's. June, to put it simply, looked terrified the closer Professor Flitwick got to her name. But get to her he did.

"Todd, Wesley!"

"RAVENCLAW!"

Wesley went to sit by Danielle Adnoid- maybe they'd met on the train- as Professor Flitwick called out, "Trotter, Isolde!"

"GRYFFINDOR!" the hat cried. I caught June's eye and gave her a thumbs-up.

"Tyler, June!"

June left the four other people left to be Sorted and sat on the stool, biting her lip.

"RAVENCLAW!" The hat had never yelled with more conviction before. June came to sit across from me and the four of us, excited to all be in one House, laughed happily.

"Vaughn, Cathy!"

"SLYTHERIN!"

After "West, Sawyer" went to Hufflepuff, "Williams, Louise" to Slytherin, and "Yew, Cassandra" to Gryffindor, Professor McGonagall took the stage again (she had sat down).

"You have all been sorted into your Houses now," she said, glancing at each of the Houses in turn. "I expect you to be a credit to whichever House the Sorting Hat has chosen for you. Now, I suppose you are all hungry-"

Zoe's stomach let out a huge rumble, and the four of us stifled giggles.

Professor McGonagall continued, "So enjoy the feast!"

Delicacies appeared on the tables in front of us as if by- _whoops, I forgot where I am_- magic.

Meats of all kinds and potatoes- boiled, mashed, cut into chips, you name it and it was there- were the main foods that cluttered the table, but there were also casseroles- vegetable as well as meat- and peas and carrots and pies and puddings. I took a bit of anything meatless and dug in.

"Oh, this is delicious," June said through a mouthful of steak-and-kidney pie. "I've never had a steak-and-kidney pie so good! How do they do it?"

A handsome third-year leaned over from where he sat on Liz's left. "House-elves," he said. "They run the kitchens. If you ever need food, for, say, a Ravenclaw feast or just when you're a bit peckish, talk to me." He smiled and dipped his head. "Joseph Forman, always at the service of pretty, distressed first years." He _winked_.

"I'm Addie Monroe," I said. "This is Liz, and June, and Zoe."

"Pleased to meet you, Addiejunelizzoe." He grinned and then went back to chatting with his third-year friends.

"Well, _he_ was handsome," a voice said.

I looked at the girl next to June, across from Nixsa. She had short, fluffy blonde hair and sparkly blue eyes. "Who are you?"

The girl laughed. "My name's Emelia, but you can call me Emmy if you like. It's what most of my friends do. I heard you introduce yourself to Joseph Forman. He is handsome, isn't he? You're Addie, you're Liz, and you're June, and you're Zoe. Do I talk too much?"

We all agreed that _yes_, Emmy was very chatty, but we didn't mind. Emmy beamed. "Good, because I talk a lot and as we're both Ravenclaw first years I have a feeling that we're all going to be good friends!" She put a spoonful of Yorkshire pudding in her mouth so as to be quiet.

After a dessert of chocolate cake and ice cream, Professor McGonagall stood up and gave a speech about how _this_ was banned... and _that_ was banned... and who the teachers were... and how we couldn't go in the Forbidden Forest... and _this_ was curfew… but we were full and tired, and June actually almost dozed off. Finally, Professor McGonagall said, "And I can see that you are tired, but before you go back to your common rooms- where your luggage and pets are waiting for you- let us uphold tradition and sing the school song!"

She waved her wand and glittery golden words, almost like the name (mine) that I had written with my wand in Diagon Alley, filled the air. "At your own leisure, let us sing!"

And we all sang:

"_Hogwarts, Hogwarts, hoggy warty Hogwarts,  
Teach us something please,  
Whether we be old and bald,  
Or young with scabby knees,  
Our heads could do with filling,  
With some interesting stuff,  
For now they're bare and full of air,  
Dead flies and bits of fluff,  
So teach us things worth knowing,  
Bring back what we've forgot,  
Just do your best, we'll do the rest,  
And learn until our brains all rot_."

I sang it at a rather fast, jaunty tune with June and Emmy, while Zoe mumbled it, half-asleep, and Liz sang in a monotonous, exhausted voice. Once a few Gryffindors were done drawing out every note for as long as they could, Professor McGonagall said, "Off to your common rooms! Good night! First years, follow your prefects!"

I walked with Liz, June, Emmy and Zoe, thinking, _This is going to be a great school year_.


	4. Chapter 4: For Lin

**I'm sorry for not updating for so long. Also, this chapter does practically nothing except extend you guys' patience and introduce a few key characters (and I do mean ****_key_****, so please remember them!) but no flames, please... writer's block and school combined are not being kind to me!**

The next morning at breakfast, we received our schedules. They were mostly the same, with a few tweaks here and there. For instance, first we all had a free period to explore the school ("That's new," said Sunny, who had chosen to sit next to Liz). Then Zoe, Emmy and I all were scheduled for Potions while Liz had Charms and June, Defense Against the Dark Arts. Then June and I were slated for Charms; Liz, Zoe and Emmy for DADA. For the final class of our day, I would go to Defense Against the Dark Arts, Liz and June would head to Potions, and Emmy and Zoe were scheduled for Charms. Charms we had with Hufflepuffs, Potions with Gryffindors, and DADA with Slytherins.

Joseph and one of his friends, a tall third-year wizard with fluffy light brown hair, offered to show the 5 of us around as they also had a free period first. We accepted their suggestion. Joseph, obviously the more talkative, introduced us to his friend.

"This is Jared Morris, pureblood. His entire family were Slytherins, but not him!" Joseph laughed.

Zoe took a liking to Jared and stayed behind the group, talking with- or, more accurately, talking _at _the shy, quiet Jared. The rest of us flocked around Joseph, chattering like birds.

"So is it true that the Potions classroom is in the dungeons? I can't trust my siblings to give me reliable information."

"What's the best class?"

"Who's the nicest teacher?"

"Is there a curfew?"

"Yes to Liz's question," Joseph answered. "Who are your so-unreliable siblings?"

"Gabe and Sunny, second years," Liz replied.

Joseph brightened, grinning. "I know Gabe. A nice chap. Now, as for _your _question-"

"My name's Emelia," Em said, "but you can call me Emmy."

"_Emmy, _there isn't a curfew. June, the best class- in my opinion- is Potions with Professor Slughorn. He's so old, he taught Liz's father!"

We all laughed.

"Now Addie, as for your question, the nicest teacher to us Claws is always Professor Flitwick, who teaches Charms. He's head of our house, and we've always wondered if he's part elf or goblin, but it's considered extremely rude to ask."

He and Jared led us on a tour of the school, showing the five of us everything from the Divination classroom ("Jared and I hate both Trelawney and her subject, it's absolute _rubbish_!") to the dungeons ("Sometimes particularly bad students will be sent down here for detention. They rarely come back up").

We finished with about thirty-five minutes to spare, so the two boys led us up to the Ravenclaw Tower, which, according to Jared, was one of the highest points in the castle. After knocking, a sweet feminine voice eminated from the door. "I have a neck but no head, a bottom but no feet. What am I?"

"Oh, that's easy," Joseph said. "I learned that one in my first year. A bottle."

The door swung open. Jared went through first, then Zoe, then Emmy and Liz and June and me and then Joseph. The common room, draped with Ravenclaw banners and with walls covered in bookshelves brimming with reading material, was packed. I spotted Nixsa, Sophie and Meilin from the Sorting sitting in chairs by the fire, and Wesley and Danielle perched laughing on a plush blue couch, and Kat standing in a corner by herself.

"Wow, it's crowded," Zoe said, eyes wide.

"If you think this is crowded," Jared told her quietly, "you should see it at night, or just after dinner, or right before breakfast."

June and Emmy split off to the room about half of us first-year Claw girls shared to freshen up, Zoe and Jared grabbed a seat by Danielle and Wesley, and Joseph spotted an old friend of his across the way and went to say hello. This left Liz and me with nothing to do, so we approached the three giggling girls by the fire.

"-and it just came right off, _poof! _We were all laughing so hard because he fell backwards- oh, hello there!" Meilin said cheerily when she spotted us. "Elizabeth and Adelsie, right?"

"You can call me Liz," Liz told her.

"Most people call me Addie," I introduced myself. "Meilin, and Sophie, and Nixsa, right?"

All three nodded. Then Sophie, a grin on her face, said, "Pull up a chair! Meilin here was just telling us the story of how her father used magic to stick her uncle's tongue to a frozen pole against his will!"

"It was pretty funny," Meilin laughed as Liz and I pulled over some high-backed velvet chairs. "He didn't believe in magic, you see."

"It must have been hilarious," I smiled. "So, you're not Muggle-born?"

"I'm half Muggle," Meilin answered. "My mum's one. My da's a wizard, though."

"I'm Muggle-born," I said proudly. "But Liz is pureblood."

"Me too," Nixsa said. Liz held her hand up for a high five, and our new friend begrudgingly hit her hand.

"I'm Muggle-born as well," Sophie said to me, "but technically I'm Squib-born, because the rest of my family are all magic. Just my parents are Squibs."

"Do I hear people talking about Mudbloods?"

All five of us spun around. Standing behind our semicircle of chairs was a girl, probably a first year just like us, with hair as black as a moonless sky at midnight and eyes as dark as her hair. She held herself with a poised, regal air. I immediately got the feeling that she believed herself better than everyone else in the room, and although I started to dislike her at once, I kept up a friendly demeanor and pretended to know what she was talking about. "Yes, we were. I'm Addie Monroe. What's your name?"

I stuck out my hand, but the girl wouldn't take it. "My name is Azura Wellington. Are you a Mudblood?"

I glanced, confused, at Liz, who shook her head at me and answered, "No. Pureblood, of the Riddle family. And you?"

Azura's eyes widened, but she kept up her regal façade. "Of course I am a pureblood, Lady Riddle."

"Lady Riddle?" I mumbled, _really_ confused.

Azura fixed her icy blue stare upon me. "She doesn't know of the Riddle family? Therefore, you must be a Mudblood!"

I raised my hands. "I don't know what that means, honestly." One look at Liz and I knew that was the wrong thing to say.

"You _are_ a Mudblood!" Azura hissed. "I have tainted myself by speaking to you!" She shuddered, wiping imaginary bugs off of her skin and fleeing the room.

I turned to the other four girls, who all seemed to have understood the crazy girl. "Okay, can someone explain what that was all about?"

"You're Muggle-born," Meilin said understandingly. "Some pureblood families look down on them and call them Mudbloods."

"They're typically assigned to Slytherin," Nixsa murmured.

"She must be really smart to have evaded her Slytherin heritage and have landed here!" Sophie said admiringly.

"And that's a good thing why?" Liz muttered, sending us all into peals of laughter.

Twenty minutes later, Zoe, Emmy, Meilin and I scurried through the hallways down into the dungeons, giggling like a pack of hyenas. We arrived at the cold Potions classroom, adjusting our now-crooked hats. One by one, our laughs subsided as we filed into the dark classroom.

***blows you all kisses* hope you liked it!**


	5. Chapter 5: For Shadow and Snow

Our unease was settled at once by the jolly teacher, Professor Slughorn. "Welcome, welcome," he said. "Sit wherever you like. I assume some of you have made friends already. Please, find a seat and make yourselves at home. We won't be brewing today, just learning some ingredients and potions and what they do."

Zoe, Emmy and Meilin sat together, but they were quickly surrounded by other insecure Ravenclaw first-years. I took a seat in the back of the classroom and was quickly joined by a fellow Claw with hair as black as the shadows in the corners of the classroom and a Gryffindor with skin as white as snow. I introduced myself as Addie, and recognized the Gryffindor as Isolde Trotter from the Sorting, but the Ravenclaw had to tell me that she was named Julie Burns.

Isolde and Julie were nothing like the friends I had made on the train or since. They were a little crazier, a little more random, and a little more like my brother Trevor. They were both what they called 'blood traitors' and had met on the train. They each had a candle, probably taken from the Great Hall, and had named them Catherine and Charlie. They were planning a candle wedding, which will show you just how odd they were.

I hushed them when the lesson started.

"Who can tell me what this potion is?" asked Professor Slughorn, holding up a bluish, runny potion in a bowling-pin-shaped bottle.

Zoe's hand, along with a bunch of others, shot up. Professor Slughorn called on Zoe and asked her name.

"Zoe Gallagher, sir, and that's the Cure for Boils."

"Correct, correct, one point to Ravenclaw. Can anyone tell me what it does?"

A Gryffindor raised her hand and identified herself as Phoebe Hallows, a name I found funny since we were at Hogwarts itself. "It cures boils, Professor."

"Of course it does, a point to Gryffindor. And who can tell me what _this_ is?"

I eyed the potion, sloshing around in its tiny clear bottle. It looked like water, and all of a sudden I knew what it was. I quickly raised my hand before anyone else, and Professor Slughorn nodded to me.

"I'm Adelsie Monroe, Professor, and isn't that Veritaserum?"

The Professor chuckled. "Very good, very good, another point to Ravenclaw. What does it do?"

Meilin raised her hand, introduced herself, and said that she believed it was a very strong truth potion.

"Yes, yes, a third point to Ravenclaw, and this one?"

We spent the first half of the class period identifying potions and their uses, and the second half recognizing potion ingredients and what they do. By the end of the class, I considered myself quite knowledgeable in that area, at least for a Muggle-born first year who hadn't even known Hogwarts was real until a month ago.

On my way out with Julie, who was also heading to Charms, I accidentally bumped into a Gryffindor girl with short, glossy black hair. She looked vaguely Chinese and very mad because her books were now decorating the floor.

"Oh, I'm sorry," I said quickly, stooping to help clean up the mess. "I didn't mean to bump into you-"

"Get away from my books, Mudblood," she said crudely, grabbing her things and zipping away like being Muggle-born was a highly contagious disease. I looked at Julie and she shrugged.

"I recognize her from the Sorting. Tess Archer, I think. She was the one who corrected Professor Flitwick when he called her _Theresa._ I had no idea that she was so rude."

I shrugged too. "Oh well. Maybe she'll leave us alone!"

And with that, we headed off to Charms, debating whether the black sheep of the Candle family should be Catherine's brother Billy or Charlie's sister Colleen.

**I've been on Pottermore a lot more lately, so hopefully I'll be in the mood to write more! (And yes, the Candle wedding actually did take place with me and a few of my friends. It was awfully fun, the black sheep ended up being Billy and he tried to sabotage the wedding, and Charlie and Catherine are now happily married.) See you soon! XD**


	6. Chapter 6: For Im

Professor Dean Thomas took attendance and then looked appreciatively around the room. I was one of two Ravenclaw girls in the class- the other being that stuck-up Azura Wellington. All of the other Claws were boys. I'd always heard Slytherin was bad, so I shied away from the green-clad girl who sat next to me in the back row, trapping me between her and the wall.

Professor Thomas was in the middle of a speech about the Dark Arts when the girl leaned over and actually looked me up and down. She nodded. "What's your name?"

"Um, Addie?" I whispered, a little frightened. "And yours?"

"Cathy. Cathy Vaughn, pureblood. What's your status on Mudbloods?"

I disliked her immediately. "I'm a Muggle-born, if that's what you mean."

She jumped back like I had burned her, and immediately switched seats with the too-friendly Slytherin next to her. The friendly Slytherin introduced herself as Nykki Hayes, twin sister to Nixsa, and we bonded over the common person.

"…and so who can name those curses? You, in the back- what's your name?"

"M-me?" I stuttered.

"Yes, you, in the blue uniform."

"Addie Monroe."

Professor Thomas smiled kindly. "Miss Monroe, can you name the Unforgivable Curses?"

Finally, my re-re-re-re-readings of the Harry Potter series would serve a real purpose! I racked my brains. "Um, the Killing Curse, the Imperius Curse, and the Cruciatus Curse?"

"That's correct," Professor Thomas said, waving his wand. A piece of chalk rose from his desk and wrote the three Unforgivable Curses on the board. "Now, we won't learn their actual incantations and how to prevent them until sixth year, but it's standard procedure that first years know what they are and what they do. You, in the green skirt- what's your name and what does the Cruciatus Curse do?"

"I'm Imogen Scott, sir," said the too-bouncy Slytherin girl in the front row- even her brownish-blonde hair was bouncy! "The Cruciatus Curse tortures its victims and causes excruciating pain."

"Therein lies the name," Professor Thomas explained. "It stems from the word _excruciating..._"

I got through the rest of the lesson easily, answering some questions and asking a few of my own. When it was done, I followed Nykki and Imogen, who seemed to be getting along, out to the Great Hall for dinner.

I sat with Meilin, Liz, Zoe, June, Nixsa, and Emmy for supper. It was standard Scottish fare- haggis with neeps and tatties, yum. About halfway through my meal, Liz noticed that Kat and Sophie weren't in our little group. After a quick examination of the rest of the Ravenclaw table, I informed her that Kat was sitting with Gabe, Lillian and Sunny. I also pointed out, "Sophie's sitting down at that end with a blond second year. Anyone know who he is?"

"I'll ask Joseph," Emmy said. Before we could protest, she had scurried down to the handsome wizard and asked him the question. He replied something and Emmy thanked him with her best flirtatious smile, then hurried back to us.

"His name is Keith Shelsher, and he's from Sophie's home town," she announced breathlessly as she slid into her seat. "But they didn't know each other until they both identified as from Biggin Hill."

We nodded and moved on to a different topic of conversation- friends we'd made today. It was pleasant enough but I was happy when we were dismissed from dinner and allowed to return to the common room for homework, if we had any, or down time.

* * *

I quickly fell into my school routine: wake up, get ready, breakfast, classes, lunch, classes, dinner, homework/relaxation time, sleep. It was very fun, for having been school. I shuddered at the thought of the generic grey boarding school I would've been sent to if I had been a Muggle.

Then, one early December night, Liz, Gabe, Joseph and I were just climbing through the common room entrance after a long and hard snowball fight when Sunny ran up to us, waving a letter. "Liz, Gabe," she panted as we discarded our snow-filled boots. "Here's a letter from Mum. We're allowed to stay at Hogwarts this year for Christmas!"

Liz and Gabe let out loud whooping cheers. "Yes!" Gabe said, grinning like all get-out. "Last year was _so _boring at home."

I immediately ran up to the first-year girls' dormitory, grabbed a quill, ink pot and parchment, and went back down to the common room. I chose a secluded window seat with a built-in desk and let the last rays of golden sunlight illuminate my parchment as I inked:

_Dear Mum and Dad,_

_I know I haven't written in a while. I've had a lot of homework. School is really fun and I'm enjoying it a lot. In fact, I love it so much that I'd like to stay here for Christmas. My friend Liz is, and I'm sure a few other friends are too. I would love it. And I'm sure I can get one of my third-year friends to buy some stuff for you in Hogsmeade if I give them the money. That means chocolate, Dad. Lots and lots of chocolate... pretty please?_

_Love, Addie_

I signed my name with a flourish, sealed the parchment, and took a quick trip to the Owlery before breakfast the next day. I attached the letter to the leg of a school owl, told the owl where to find my parents, and sent it. A week later, I got their reply.

_Dearest Addie:_

_Of course you can stay at Hogwarts for Christmas. Maybe next year you can invite a few of your friends home. Dad sends his love and wants you to send all the chocolate you can find. You do take after him. John and Noah want you to send them pranking materials for Christmas-they say there's a joke shop in Hogsmeade. Trevor says hello and we all miss you!_

_Love, Mum_

Liz was just as thrilled as I to learn that I would be staying for Christmas. In fact, only Liz, Liz's siblings, Nixsa and I would be staying out of my group of Ravenclaws. Other friends who were planning on celebrating at Hogwarts were Nykki and Julie. Not a small group, but not a big one, either.

I was staying at Hogwarts!

**I'm sorry I haven't written in a bit. I've been busy with Pottermore itself. But I'm back in the joylah! (Joylah means groove zone.)**


	7. Chapter 7: For Night Fury

I woke up Christmas morning to shouts of delight from my fellow first-year Ravenclaw girls as they opened the presents that had inconspicuously piled up at the foot of their beds during the night. Swinging my legs out of bed, I grinned at the stack of neatly wrapped gifts marked _Addie. _

Zoe, who had just opened a box of Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans from June, motioned to my presents. "Open them!"

Grinning, I tore into the first package. It was three Chocolate Frogs in a jumbo box from Nixsa.

"Oh, Nixsa!" I grinned at her from across the room. "Thanks! I _love _chocolate."

The next present, from Mum and Dad, yielded four Muggle books, all of which from series I had loved and not had time to finish before departing for Hogwarts. The third, from Charlie, was also books- _Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them _and _The Tales of Beetle the Bard. _

"Got enough reading material yet?" teased Liz.

"Not in the slightest," I shot back happily.

The following present, from Liz herself, was a small vial of Sleeping Draught, enough for one good night's sleep or a few quick naps. Lately, my slumber had been restless, so it was perfect. I smiled at her. "How did you get this?"

"I made Sunny brew some for me," she said with a shrug and a grin. "You know how adept she is at potion-making."

June gifted me a bag of marshmallow toffees, and Zoe had apparently given _everyone _some Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans. The rest of my friends had sent me assorted candies and toys, just as I had sent them each a joke wand from Weasley's Wizard Wheezes (thank God for Charlie).

When we got to the Great Hall for breakfast, Professor McGonagall surprised us by saying, "As a lovely Christmas present to you all, you are allowed to sit at any table for all of the rest of Christmas break. Please enjoy yourselves."

Delighted, I waved Julie and Nykki over. Sunny and Gabe switched over to the Hufflepuff table and Kat to Slytherin, and the five remaining Ravenclaws scattered at the Gryffindor table, leaving the long blue table for me and my friends only.

Liz took a bite of toast. "I can't wait until lunch," she confided.

"Why?" Julie asked, smiling.

Liz grinned. "Gabe and Sunny have been raving about the Christmas feast for lunch and dinner. Apparently, it's delicious, according to some of their friends. They've never seen it either, but those descriptions..." She rubbed her stomach. "Mmm."

"You're making me hungry," Nykki complained.

"So eat," grunted Nixsa, putting some eggs on her sister's plate. We all giggled.

After breakfast, Liz and her siblings annihilated Julie, the twins and I in a snowball fight. Even grumpy Nixsa stirred herself from her grouchiness and seemed to enjoy herself, filling Sunny's bag with snow after emptying her books onto the common room floor and making snowballs with a vigor. Nykki, who had excellent aim, threw the snowballs, and Julie and I scurried back and forth, stealing the snowballs that Gabe was so steadfastly making, sabotaging their fort, and building our own. Still, we ended up under piles of snow, having lost horribly. In return, once we had changed into fresh uniforms, I beat Liz in a game of wizard's chess- she was terrible at it, and after years of playing normal chess with my father, I knew the game well. Liz's pieces tried to mutiny against me, but I forced them to kill her pawns, rooks, bishops and eventually king and queen.

After that, Liz and her siblings disappeared to write Christmas letters to their mum and the twins went to go find some of Nykki's Slytherin friends, leaving Julie and I alone in the common room (besides a dozing sixth year in a chair by the fire). After exchanging mischievous looks, we promptly carried out the wedding between Charlie and Catherine Candle. Billy, the black candle, crashed the reception and tried to make away with the wedding cake, but Colleen (the baker of the cake) clocked him over the head and the cake was saved. I accidentally blew out Catherine's flame, and Julie was horrified- "You've killed her!"- but a quick strike of a match revived the candle bride and Julie was satisfied. We sent them off on their honeymoon (e.g., put them back in the Great Hall where they belonged).

Lunch was a beautiful affair. The Hall was decorated with at least ten huge Christmas trees. The walls and branches supported tinsel, banners, and baubles in silver, gold, bronze and white. Two Ravenclaw seventh years, with the support of the professors, conjured up puffy whitish-gray clouds and made a layer of powdered snow fall lightly onto the tables, our hair and shoulders, and the floor, not to mention the food. After having a quick laugh, the professors cast mini Shield Charms over our plates so we wouldn't be eating the slush.

Even better, the crackers exploded, leaving us with prizes and presents. I left the Great Hall in the midst of a chattering crowd, carrying a few Galleons, two wriggling white mice for Fernunculus, a set of white wizard's chess pieces that I knew wouldn't mutiny against me, a whole new _book_ (Challenging Concoctions, by Penny Maximilian Miller), and an Exploding Snap pack. Dinner was the same deal, with different presents, and I collapsed into my bed happy at night.

Merry Christmas.

**My friend PixieChestnut17167, or Pixie on PotterMore (one of my best friends in real life), has decided she'd like to contribute her PM story. Tess Archer is based off of her, from Potions class, and she has written up a few chapters using my characters. Since she doesn't have a Fan Fiction account (and doesn't particularly want one), I agreed to let her post them on my account as a new story. However, most of what she's written takes place in Addie's and Tess's fifth year, so it'll be a while until those are posted. Just letting y'all know! :)**


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